Spreader tables are generally known, for example, from U.S. Pat. No. 4,919,171 (Dornier), issued Apr. 24, 1990, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,070,912 (Ludwig), issued Dec. 10, 1991. Such spreader tables have a projection pointing in a direction opposite to the fabric travel direction and the projection extends substantially toward the center of a weft thread insertion channel in the weaving reed. The upwardly facing side of the projection forms a support surface for the fabric. A forward spreader element is normally arranged at the inlet of the spreader table and a rearward spreader element is arranged at the outlet of the spreader table.
Depending on the type of fabric, different constructions of fabric spreaders are used on looms in order to spread each fabric individually in accordance with its particular characteristics. Quite a number of different approaches have been taken heretofore in order to assure the proper spreading of any type of fabric. However, a spreader that can be retooled for use in connection with different types of fabrics must be efficiently retoolable. Such a spreader would be especially advantageous if the retooling operations could be kept to a minimum, so as to reduce the required man hours for the retooling, yet provide a proper adaptation for the particular type of fabric to be produced.
European Patent Publication 0,292,429, (Knaus) published Nov. 23, 1988, disclosed an apparatus for spreading the fabric as it is produced in a loom in which a carrier is provided that extends in parallel to the weft thread insertion direction. The carrier supports passive spreader elements which include at least one fixed fabric support and an exchangeable detour element for the fabric. The support and the detour element extend over the entire weaving width. The exchangeable detour element cooperates with an exchangeable active spreader element for increasing the looping angle of the active spreader element, which is constructed as a spreader roller or cylinder. The spreader roller or cylinder around which the fabric loops is necessarily rotated by the motion of the fabric between the passive spreader element and the fabric support. This type of construction substantially solves the problem of adapting the spreader and support apparatus to different types of fabrics by exchanging a few elements, but there is no room for improvement.
European Patent Publication 0,412,294, (Ludwig) published Feb. 13, 1991, which corresponds to U.S. Pat. No. 5,070,912, discloses an air loom with a spreader table that encircles like a trough a spreader member which is effective along the fabric margin. The spreader table also has a projection that extends toward the center of the weft thread insertion channel in the weaving reed in the area of the forward fabric detour. The upwardly facing side of the projection forms an extension of the support surface of the spreader table. Two spreader elements are integrated into the construction. One spreader element is arranged in the transition area between the projection and the trough of the spreader table that is in the inlet portion of the spreader table. The other spreader element is arranged at the fabric exit or outlet of the spreader table. Preferably, the spreader elements extend along the entire weaving width. The spreader table according to European Patent Publication 0,412,294 combines a plurality of features that assure certain advantages, such as an excellent centering of the beat-up point or line and a fabric spreading that functions in a plurality of ways. Nevertheless, the spreader table of European Patent Publication 0,412,294 is not universally usable for any desired type of fabrics to be produced on air nozzle looms. The types of fabrics in which it is advantageous to employ a so-called rod spreader require a retooling of the loom. Such rod spreaders assure a substantially more advantageous fabric looming angle around the spreader rod.